Business bulletin: 9 February 2023

The Northern Territory is further strengthening ties with Timor-Leste with the signing of a 4-year strategic partnership agreement, boosting business and trade opportunities between our jurisdictions.

Timor-Leste is identified as a priority country in the Northern Territory international engagement strategy.

The strategy outlines the Territory Government’s plan to be the preferred partner for business, in an intensely competitive and rapidly evolving global market.

The strategic partnership agreement 2023 to 2027 builds on the previous agreement and reinforces the strong relationship between Timor-Leste and the Northern Territory.

Under the agreement, plans of action will identify initiatives to support education, business and workforce, trade and investment, tourism, emergency preparedness, agriculture, health, sports, arts and culture.

These initiatives reflect our regions shared commitment to cooperation and exchange and will add to our growing bilateral relationship.

The Northern Territory Government welcomes the signing of the strategic partnership agreement and will work with Timor-Leste to identify further strategic priorities.

A business that started with a single stump grinder is poised to lead the way in a major recycling project.

Northern Waste Reduction Services has been granted more than $1.4 million under the Northern Territory (NT) Recycling Modernisation Fund to develop a $6.3 million tyre recycling plant in Katherine.

The plant will recycle and repurpose 75% of the Territory’s end-of-life tyres each year - processing 5,000 tonnes of waste tyres into products for road surfacing, footpaths, playground soft fall, horse racing tracks, moulding and rubber mulch.

The project will support 3 jobs during construction and 5 during operation.

Managing director Peter Wasley says the grant will be used to buy recycling equipment.

Old tyres will be processed after being collected from throughout the Territory, including rural and remote communities.

The plant is expected to be partially operational by October.

“Our move towards developing the tyre processing facility has been a long-term goal that is now well under way,” Mr Wasley says.

Northern Waste Reduction Services started 4 years ago as a subsidiary of Katherine Tree Maintenance, which was established with that solitary stump grinder in 2003.

Applications for the second round of grants under the NT Recycling Modernisation Fund are now open.

The Australian and Territory governments are co-investing $3.8 million under the Recycling Modernisation Fund to improve waste processing capacity in the NT.

For more information, go to the Northern Territory Government website.

As a business owner, navigating the extensive range of support and funding programs out there can be confusing, time-consuming and at times overwhelming.

The Northern Territory (NT) business support guide simplifies the search process for you. Find the most current support programs and funding initiatives available to you at both a local and national level.

The guide includes business and workforce support from the NT Government, Australian Government as well as non-government support.

The guide also includes specific support for Aboriginal businesses, not-for-profits and key industry sectors including agribusiness, civil and construction, mining and energy, and tourism.

Whether you are starting your business from scratch, looking to develop your workforce, or wanting to diversify and grow your operations, the NT business support guide will become your go-to, wherever you are in your business journey.

Download NT business support guide from the Northern Territory Government website.

You can also meet with one of the department’s small business champions or workforce development officers in your region who can help to identify the types of support your business can access.

Get in touch today by calling 1800 193 111 or email businessinfo@nt.gov.au.

Looking for a way to commercialise your innovative product, business or concept? Then the Business Innovation Program 2.0 (BIP 2.0) is for you.

BIP 2.0 is a business support program that assists Territory businesses to develop and commercialise innovation through funding and expert advisor support.

The program includes funding up to $30,000 and is run in 3 stages - planning, development and commercialisation. Participants will also receive one-on-one mentoring and support from a pre-approved advisor to progress and commercialise their concept.

With applications for the BIP 2.0 program now open, Innovation Territory will host a ‘Meet your BIP Advisor’ event on Thursday 23 February.

At the event, advisors will present a 3-minute pitch as to how they can support Territory business to turn their innovation into commercialisation.

The event provides a unique opportunity to network with some of the Territory’s most exciting innovators, start-up founders and fast growth companies.

Registrations for the Meet your BIP 2.0 Advisor event is essential and can be booked on the Eventbrite website.

Applications for BIP 2.0 are open until 30 April 2023. For more on the program, go to the Northern Territory Government website.

Last week 23 Samoan aged care workers graduated from a skills development pilot program in Alice Springs.

The Samoan workers arrived in the Northern Territory (NT) in 2021 during COVID under the Pacific Australian Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme to provide a much needed boost to our aged care sector. This was the first time the NT (and the first jurisdiction in Australia) has welcomed overseas aged care workers through PALM scheme to support labour market needs.

The PALM scheme is an Australian Government initiative that allows eligible Australian businesses to hire workers from 9 Pacific islands and Timor-Leste when there are not enough local workers available.

The Samoan workers, who are employed through the Australian Regional and Remote Community Services have spent the last 18 months working in aged care facilities in Alice Springs, Katherine and Tennant Creek.

Of the 35 Samoan workers to arrive in the Territory, 23 participated in a skills development pilot and have since completed their Certificate III in Individual Support.

Demand for workers in the Territory’s aged care sector is driven by an ageing workforce and skill shortages exacerbated by staff turnover.

The pilot program will ensure that our aged care residents living in regional and remote parts of the Territory will be supported and cared for, while also filling workforce gaps in those facilities.

For more information about the PALM scheme, go to the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility website.